The Carlyle Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CG) Short Interest Update

The Carlyle Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CG) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,910,000 shares, an increase of 23.1% from the January 31st total of 8,860,000 shares. Currently, 4.3% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,270,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.8 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The Carlyle Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of The Carlyle Group during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. National Pension Service purchased a new stake in The Carlyle Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in The Carlyle Group by 149.3% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 546 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Carlyle Group by 253.1% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Group LTD purchased a new position in shares of The Carlyle Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors own 55.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on CG shares. TD Cowen lifted their price target on The Carlyle Group from $43.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Wolfe Research raised shares of The Carlyle Group from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of The Carlyle Group from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of The Carlyle Group from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of The Carlyle Group from $56.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.93.

The Carlyle Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CG traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $45.15. The company had a trading volume of 277,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,249,727. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $52.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.05. The company has a market capitalization of $16.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The Carlyle Group has a 1 year low of $36.65 and a 1 year high of $57.50.

The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ:CG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The financial services provider reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.00 by ($0.08). The Carlyle Group had a net margin of 18.81% and a return on equity of 24.02%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Carlyle Group will post 4.48 earnings per share for the current year.

The Carlyle Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The Carlyle Group’s payout ratio is currently 50.36%.

The Carlyle Group Company Profile

The Carlyle Group Inc is an investment firm specializing in direct and fund of fund investments. Within direct investments, it specializes in management-led/ Leveraged buyouts, privatizations, divestitures, strategic minority equity investments, structured credit, global distressed and corporate opportunities, small and middle market, equity private placements, consolidations and buildups, senior debt, mezzanine and leveraged finance, and venture and growth capital financings, seed/startup, early venture, emerging growth, turnaround, mid venture, late venture, PIPES.